Mount Washington School Math Scores Up, English Down

California State Standards Test (CST) scores results released on Monday show that students at made progress in math, but took a small step back in English and Language Arts.

According to data provided by the California Department of Education, the number of students who scored advanced in math increased in every grade from three through six.  That number dipped slightly for second graders, though, with only 43 percent scoring advanced in 2011 as opposed to 47 percent in 2010.

Students in grade four showed the most significant progress in math, with the number of students scoring advanced increasing from 50 percent in 2010 to 79 percent in 2011. Fifth graders also made impressive gains, increasing their ranks in the advanced category from 29 percent in 2010 to 48 percent in 2011.

District-wide and school specific data can be browsed through the California Star Program's website.

The increased math CST scores at Mount Washington Elementary reflects a trend seen across LAUSD in 2011. According to the California Department of Education, the number percentage of LAUSD students who scored advanced on the test increased in grades two through six, and held steady at 10 percent in grade seven.

However, Mount Washington Elementary's results on the English and Language Arts portion of the test did not mirror the modest gains shown across LAUSD.

The percentage of students scoring advanced dropped slightly at almost every grade level at Mount Washington: grade two, 53 percent to 48 percent; grade three, 39 percent to 34 percent; grade five, 42 percent to 41 percent and grade six, 48 percent to 45 percent.

Grade four students bucked the trend, though, making gains in ELA that were just as impressive as their leap in math. The numbers show that 73 percent of fourth graders scored advanced on the test, up from 45 percent last year.

Mount Washington Elementary Principal Elizabeth Valentino, who was busy working the phones at the school on Tuesday afternoon, could only briefly comment on the results.

"I'm super pleased with the performance of my fourth graders, especially for getting 100 percent advanced or proficient in math," she said. "I haven't had time to fully examine the numbers compared to last year, though, so I wasn't aware that there was a drop."

Overall, Mount Washington Elementary continued to perform at an above average level compared to average scores across LAUSD.

At almost every grade level, Mount Washington put at least 10 percent more students in the advanced category than the average LAUSD school.

However, it should be noted that the challenges faced by Mount Washington Elementary are different from that of the typical LAUSD school as well.

For example, according to the International Center of Educational Statistics, 31 percent of Los Angeles Unified School District students are English Language Learners. Mount Washington Elementary's Adequate Yearly Progress report shows that only 2 percent of students at the school are English Language Learners.